Tuesday, December 14, 2010

House Democrats want equalization in Senate Tax Bill Deal

According to the Huffington Post, there is a movement among some Democrats in the US House to equalize the benefits that the unemployed and the rich would get under the Reid-McConnell plan.

WASHINGTON -- House Democrats will consider a resolution Tuesday night calling for the tax deal struck between President Barack Obama and congressional Republicans to be amended so that the tax cuts for the wealthy are extended for the same period of time as unemployment insurance.

[UPDATE - 8:15 p.m.: Democrats leaving the meeting told HuffPost that a decision was made not to vote on the resolution, a setback for advocates of amending the tax cut deal. Negotiations, however, were ongoing, they said. "I think that's unsettled at this point," Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas) said.]
Under the current bill, the unemployed would get a 13-month extension, while the wealthy would get two years worth of tax cuts. Extending unemployment insurance beyond the 13 months will be difficult with the GOP in control of the House next year.

The resolution will be put forward by Rep. David Wu (D-Ore.), according to a notice of the resolution obtained by HuffPost. "Resolved: The Democratic Caucus shall vote to consider a bill in the House where the extension date of all Bush tax cuts is equal to the extension of Unemployment Insurance Benefit," reads the start of the resolution.